Sweet Bonds
by Demonic Dawn
Summary: Ashley and Crystal find themselves transported to a forest. Not knowing where to go, they follow the forest path to a mansion. Specifically, the Phantomhive mansion.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji nor do I own Fruits Basket

Prologue

"Ashley~ C'mon let's go!"

The short haired girl pouted and glanced up at the other beside her. "We don't want to be late for school right?" Her adorable pout transformed into a bright smile and she looped her arms around the other's arm, tugging forward. The other girl, Ashley gave a small twitch of the lips and peered down at her companion.

Ashley Higurashi, a tall half Japanese half American had a height that dwarfed any other. With strange piercing golden eyes and long, platinum blonde hair that flowed in tresses behind her she was a dominating figure that seemed to ward people away despite her cool beauty.

She nodded and walked forward, the smaller girl skipping with her.

The other woman that grasped her arm was Crystal Heartfield. A full American, she had warm baby blue eyes and golden hair that curled at the tips. Her bright personality drew people to her like honey and she was considered an 'idol' among her classmates.

Both were best friends since childhood, and both participated in the St. Katherine Catholic School. The school was placed smack in the middle of the dark woods. Yet it was one of the elite private schools that allowed only the 'superior' on their grounds. Students were required to excel in subjects including mathematics, science, English, the romance languages, latin, social studies, politics, arts, music, etc. The list went on and on and for most people, the workload was extremely strenuous.

The two friends were headed to school together, or really the lockers as they lived in the dormitory. Hand on arm, they followed the forest path for a few miles (the campus was enormous) to the lockers and began to the take the necessary items.

As soon as Ashley had opened her lock, a large almost flooding amount of letters burst forth from the locker and slid onto the floor. Crystal pouted once more.

"Muuu~ Ashley always gets a whole bunch of love letters, just like in anime! Even though everybody's scared of you, you get letters anyway… Just like in anime! OH! Remember in Fruits Basket, where Yuki also had that during Valentines Day? But you get it even when it's _not_ a holiday." She giggled, probably thinking of all the other animes she had watched the night before.

Yes, Crystal was an anime/manga factic, an otaku as most commonly known. The school was actually very lenient with rules despite being a Catholic school. In fact, they weren't even religious. Most things could be brought in; the authorities didn't find that females brought in porn anyways. So Crystal lived her life with her room filled with anime posters on the walls, figurines decorating the tables and volumes of manga in the bookshelves, bed, and anywhere else available.

Her favorite anime though, was definitely Kuroshitsuji. And it was most definitely because of one of her favorite characters in that show. Which would be Ciel. Yes, those cold, blue eyes that had almost no emotion but irritation in them. That cute, chubby face that begged to be squeezed. The small, lean body oh so huggable. He was utterly too cute for that butler, Sebastion, of his.

Even thinking about the boy was too much, as the daydreaming girl began to grin and drool. Ashley noticed this and smirked. She tapped the still drooling girl on the shoulder and awoke her.

"I'm sure that you had developed this pedophilia as a teen, hopefully?" Ashley leered. Crystal gasped and replied with passion, "I am NOT a pedophile! Ciel is 13! It's only a 4 years difference!"

"Yes, yes. Now, if we don't hurry, we'll be late to class. Perhaps you should be aware of your imaginary ogling of the boy while in school, Crystal."

Ashley wasn't an otaku, but she had been told about the characters, plot, setting, all courtesy of Crystal. Her interests really lied in cooking and drawing; specialty being bakery and painting.

The petite girl ignored her friend with defiance and skipped merrily to class.

The day had ended quickly for both students. Ashley breezed through her classes while Crystal, though intelligent, settled for thinking of her beloved Ciel and ignored her teachers when possible.

The last class was finished, and the two met up at the lockers once more. Unfortunately, just as soon as they finished packing up, the cloudy skies had started to rain. It was a slight drizzle, but they had brought no umbrellas, and walking for a while with but a thin shirt and skirt/pants was not healthy. Therefore, they decided to wait.

It was too bad for them; the drizzle had then turned to a heavy storm that showed no signs of stopping.

"Do you think we should sleep here for tonight?" Crystal suggested. After a moment of pondering, Ashley agreed with a nod of her head. "I believe we should head for library. I remember there are sofas there available."

Crystal brightened at the prospect of a soft make-shift bed and nodded, tugging the other to the library.

Once they had arrived, they headed straight for the center where the sofas were.

But what really surprised them was the small item that sat alone on the mahogany table in the very center. Moving closer, Crystal gasped. Snatching the item, she observed it and spoke, "I-It's a ring!"

Ashley raised her brow and spoke, "Yes. And?"

Crystal continued, "I-It looks the exact same as the one Ciel has! The one that shows he's the head of the Phantomhive family!" She immediately grasps it tightly in hands and holds it close to her chest.

The other girl merely stared in confusion. Now why in the world was a ring that looked like that of an anime characters be doing here? Perhaps there was some other unknown fan of the show and had forgotten her replica of the ring here?

Ashley began to ask Crystal to let it go and return it to the table, but something extraordinary had happened.

The ring glowed brightly and Crystal cried out in pain before letting go of it. It dropped to the carpeted floor and the room flashed momentarily as the two shielded their eyes from the light.

Seconds later, the flash had receded, and the two were overwhelmed with a thunderous sound of the rain that pelted them, cold wind that blew harshly into their faces and the sight of no library; nothing but a forest path with trees surrounding them on both sides.

Stunned, Crystal stood up with some effort through her soaked clothes and muttered, "Where are we?"

Ashley, who had gotten up and glanced around took a moment before answering, "I have no clue. It must have been the ring… Do you have it?" Crystal shifted her hands through her clothes and stuttered, "N-No. I must have dropped it before…"

"…I see."

The two were now soaked to the bone and freezing.

"We need to get out of the rain." Ashley started, and began walking along the dirt path with Crystal right beside her. They followed the path, hoping to get somewhere with a cave or house for shelter.

After the first mile or so, Crystal began sneezing and holding her arms together in an effort to conserve warmth. Worried, Ashley wrapped her arms around the shivering girl. Smiling gratefully, Crystal leaned against her and they continued walking.

By the third mile, Crystal had closed eyes and heavy breathing. It was obvious she was getting sick. Now even more worried for the girl, Ashley had lifted Crystal up in her arms and began to walk quickly on the path. A slightest slip would not be good for them, prohibiting her from half-hazardly running along the slippery wet road.

Ashley had begun to feel tired and dizzy herself, so she quickened up the pace even more. Another few minutes passed before the road opened up to a large area. To her delight, there stood a large mansion.

Wasting no time, she flung open the gates and ran to the door. Banging on the door, she waited merely a second before it was opened by some strange man, dressed in butler drabs.

Stretching her arms out, Ashley begged, "Take care of her. _Please._" The man had a puzzled look on his face as he stared at her. But Ashley didn't notice, as she too succumbed to illness and lost consciousness; her vision fading to black.

Owari

A/N: This is my first Kuroshitsuji fic. I hope you liked it, though you didn't get to see Ciel or Sebastian yet. This was mainly to introduce the characters. They'll appear in the next chapter. Please review and give helpful critism on my writing! By the way, this is not yaoi (though I wish it was). Ashley will be with someone, as well as Crystal. Also, are the names too strange or not fit the characters?


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji, nor do I own Sebasitan and Ciel. If I did, well... you wouldn't want to know.

Chapter 1

Sebastian pondered at what to do with the two 'guests'. They certainly were strange, with clothes that had not the least bit of modesty. What were they even doing out in the storm?

So he decided to bring this to his young master. Wasting not a second, he strode to where his master should be sleeping and gave a small knock on the door. Receiving no answer, he opened the door quietly and peered inside. There was Ciel, leaning against the window and staring outside.

"Young master, may I ask as to why you are not asleep?" Sebastian queried. Again, receiving no answer he continued. "We currently have two 'guests'. They appeared in the front door and both are now unconscious in the living room. Do you wish to dispose of them, or would you like to observe them first?"

Releasing an irritated sigh Ciel answered, "I suppose I'll look at them. Do they look like a threat?" He rose from his seat and waited for his butler to dress him. Complying, Sebastian began to slip his undergarments off and fitted on his shirt and such. "No, both look harmless. They're female. But they are… strange, for the better word." Sebastian supplied while clothing the boy. Ciel looked curious, but began moving.

They walked down the stairwells and Sebastian led Ciel into the living room where the two girls resided. As soon as Ciel laid eyes on the two, be blushed and turned around from the sight. Sebastian let his mouth morph into a smirk and chuckled, "I suppose the sight is too much for my young master?"

Indeed, Ashley and Crystal were in their revealing summer clothes that showed their legs, arms, and collarbone. Not to mention what the rain did to the thin cloth.

"Get them dressed!" Ciel commanded with a red face and stomped off into the other room. Sebastian gave another amused chuckle and complied, starting with the shorter one, then the taller. Once they were dried and covered with an undergarment he called, "They are ready, young master."

Ciel came right back in and carefully led his eyes to the two before nodding and commanded, "Wake them up."

"They seem to be ill from the rain, so they may not wake" Sebastian commented, before walking to the shorter one. A nudge, but she didn't wake. After a few more nudges, it was obvious the girl was too deep to be woken.

So he walked to the other, and gave a nudge. After the third, the girl shivered and blearily pushed herself up.

"W-Where am I?" Ashley twisted her eyes around the large room in a daze and stopped on the short, blue eyed boy. Those characteristics were familiar…

That's when she paled. The boy looked exactly like how Crystal had described her favorite character. "Are you 'Ciel'?" The boy's eyes narrowed by a margin and he answered promptly, "Ciel Phantomhive. Who are you and what were you two doing on my property."

Ashley smirked and retorted, "As arrogant and whiney as Crystal mentioned I see." Infuriated at her rudeness, Ciel was about to growl when Sebastian interrupted. "This Crystal is the girl beside you I suppose?"

She flipped her eyes to the voice beside her and stared into two deep red eyes. "…Yes. I suggest you do not wake her… For less obvious reasons." As she said this, she stared at the boy in the room. "And why is that?" the boy demanded.

"… You will find out once she awakens. By the way, may I ask what… year we are in?"

Ciel raised his eyebrow at the strange question and Sebastian replied, "It is the year of 1889." Ashley's stunned expression lasted for only a second before she sighed and asked, "If it is not too much trouble, would you let us stay for a night? And you needn't worry. We are no threat to you at all. In fact, one of us is very… fond of you."

The boy was confused, but he nodded. "It wouldn't be good for the Phantomhive reputation to leave guests outside in a storm. You will stay for the night. Sebastian, prepare two rooms for the ladies." That said, he walked away up to his bedroom.

Giving a grateful bow, Ashley began to pick up Crystal when the butler interrupted her. "Perhaps you should let me help. You are ill right now." he said and lifted the other up in his arms. Ashley gazed suspiciously at the man before nodding and following him to her temporary stay. Crystal's room was right across from hers, so Ashley fell on the bed, exhausted and closed her eyes.

Sebastian stared at the now sleeping girl with curiosity before closing the doors and moving to the other room, dropping the girl on the bed and leaving.

The next morning, the tall girl woke softly in the bright sun. Dazed at the sunshine, she slip out of bed and tried to regain her senses. 'Crystal and I had stayed in the library. We found a ring. We were somehow transported to that anime of hers. We stayed for the night…'

Snapping up, she twisted her head around the room. Seeing no one there, she walked swiftly to the doors and pulled open the doors.

Only to find the butler in front of her. He had a surprised expression and asked, "I thought you would've been out until noon. Are you alright?" She locked straight onto those ruby eyes and asked a question herself. "Is Crystal still asleep?"

His face twisted into a scowl of irritation for a mere second before he smiled and answered, "Yes, I just checked her. However, young master wishes to see you now." Ashley made a scowl that mirrored his a second ago. "…Then as much as I will regret this, you should probably wake Crystal. She's needed. Is she alright? She doesn't have a fever does she?"

It seemed the girl was really worried about her companion. Sebastian smirked and informed her, "Luckily, she has contracted no illness."

Ashley breathed out in relief and spoke, "Good. I'll wake her up. You… should stand outside." Sebastian smiled. "May I ask as to why?" Ashley glared and retorted, "Why, you're being awfully curious. Relax. You will know why when we visit Ciel." With that, she walked out and across to the other door. She missed the man's fake smile.

Opening and closing the door as quietly as possible, she strode next to the bed and peered down at the angelic face. Putting a hand on her check she whispered, "Crystal. Wake up."

But unlike Ashley, who was a light sleeper, Crystal was a very heavy sleeper and couldn't be woken up easily. Cold water didn't work. A yell in the ear didn't work. Even a slap couldn't wake the sleeping girl. Sighing, Ashley braced herself and pounced on the bed. Making sure to put all her weight crushing the girl, Crystal finally woke up. Drowsy.

"Huh~ Ashley, we don't have school today right? Why'd you wake me up~?" Ashley got up and whispered into her ear softly, "Because we are not in the dormitory, nor are we in our world. We… are in the world of your favorite show. Kuroshitsuji."

It took Crystal only a second before she regained all her memories of the night before, which wasn't much. "REALLY? Then- Then- Take to me Ciel!" She jumped off the bed and pulled Ashley to the door. The taller girl sighed. Her reaction didn't surprise her one bit.

"We will be talking to him right now, along with that butler of his." Ashley informed her and led her outside to the waiting butler. Crystal took a look at him and cooed, "Ah! Sebastian~ As cute as never, but not as cute as Ciel."

He stared strangely at her before leading the two up to his master's room.

The door was knocked upon before an "Enter" as heard. The three walked in, and Ashley prepared herself for the scene that was about to unfold.

Taking one look at the boy, Crystal squealed and pounced on him, making both bodies slam to the floor. Ciel was frozen in shock and Sebastian had a combination of bafflement as well as humor.

Crystal hadn't let go of the boy yet. She was snuggling into his small chest and stroking the soft cheeks with a love struck gaze. Ashley groaned in embarrassment over her friend's actions and barked, "Crystal, off. _Now_."

When the girl refused to listen, Ashley sighed and stepped forward, pulling the girl off the child. It turns out Crystal had yet to let go, resulting in Ashley pulling both bodies up. Ciel was still uncomfortably squished in Crystal's grasp.

But despite his flaming cheeks, he used all his power and pushed the girl off, yelling, "GET OF ME!" He had successfully pushed the girl away, and she stumbled into the arms of the other woman with a stricken look on her face.

That's when the waterworks started.

Crystal stood brokenheartedly with tears flowing down her cheeks. Ashley sighed. Should she really even try to help the girl?

Another exhausted sigh and Ashley comforted the girl with warm remarks. "Don't cry, you wouldn't want to show the boy your tears, right? C'mon, don't worry; did you not see the boy blushing? He likes you… It's just that you're a stranger to him…Perhaps you could try to learn more about each other? You are a stranger to him after all…"

Ashley turned her head and glared at the impassive face of the child. Her eyes asked, 'Comfort her or else'. It was a threat, really.

Ciel ignored her, even if he did feel an unknown pang of guilt in his chest.

Huffing in irritation, she slowly led the sniffing girl to a chair and sat her down. "You have questions about who we are and where we come from, correct?" Ashley asked while continuously patting Crystal's back.

Ciel nodded haughtily and Ashley began, "We… aren't from this world. This will seem ridiculous to you, but in our world, you are part of a show, called, Kuroshitsuji. Fitting yes? Sebastian as the 'black butler'. The title suits him well. Anyways, you two, in our world of course, are merely fictional characters created by people. Crystal and I found a ring similar to yours in our world, and it somehow transferred us here. With nowhere to go, we followed the forest path which led us to your mansion where we are no conversing. That is all… If you choose not to believe us, we have proof."

By the end of her short summarized story, the two characters were stunned, though each had different ways of showing it. Sebastian had raised eyebrows even with his smile still in place while Ciel had widened eyes with a tint of mistrust in them.

The boy (after regaining his senses) snorted. "Then show me your proof, woman." Ashley retorted, "If you please, my name is not 'woman' it is Ashley Higurashi. You may call me Higurashi" Turning to the now still girl beside her she requested, "Crystal, would you like to tell these men how we are telling the truth? Perhaps give them tidbits of their history? But remember, no spoilers."

A few seconds passed before the girl nodded and stood. Pointing a figure at the butler she spoke. "Sebastian Michaelis. The butler of Ciel, and also a demon. He's most likely a crow or raven demon, and he's working as a butler for Ciel so he can eat his soul. His signature line is, 'I am one hell of a butler'. Kyaa~ Kakkoii ~ He has his contract underneath his glove on his hand. He can clean, cook, and do almost anything." Both males in the room were now wide with astonishment (though Sebastian concealed it more).

Then, pointing to Ciel she spoke, "Ciel Phantomhive. He's the one that hold's the Phantomhive name with that ring of his. He has a fiancé called Elizabeth. He considers everyone his pawn, though Sebastian is really his black knight. His past… I don't really want to talk about. But he lost his parents in a fire and was kidnapped. That's where Sebastian came in! And did you know he looks ADORABLE in a dress? Sebastian, you should see him! He looks so cute~"

At the end of her speech she giggled and reminisced about the episode where he did, in fact where that frilly pink dress. Ciel shivered, disgusted at the prospect of him ever wearing a dress.

Crystal's mood switched from sadness to joy as she laughed deliriously. Ashley sighed and smiled at the familiar antics of her friend. Then with a serious look, she stared at Ciel.

"I suppose you believe us now?"

Ciel was in heavy thought. They seemed harmless enough, but faces showed only the tiniest bit of a person's true self. Coupled with the fact the he knew nothing about them while they knew everything about him through some _television program_ for gods sakes, wasn't pleasant. He wasn't even entirely sure they were telling the truth.

Unsure of what to say or do, he peeked to the side of his eyes at Sebastian, who merely continued to smile. The boy frowned. His butler's annoying attitude was really getting on his nerves.

"I cannot trust you ye-"

"I realize that. Crystal and I have met you only a night ago, and we are a mystery to you. However, I assure you, we are definitely not a threat. You can already tell from Crystal's… frivolous actions towards you, and there is no reason for me to endanger you." Ashley interrupted sharply and her golden eyes pierced Ciel's own blue hues.

Now, Ciel would never say he was intimidated, but the girl was… deadly in some ways.

"We will be searching for a way to leave, but for now, would you be able to provide us a room? We'll leave as soon as possible." Ashley asked hopefully.

But Crystal pouted beside her. "Awwww~ Why's that? Can't we stay longer?" she whined, wanting to bond with her (hopefully) future friends.

"Well Crystal, think of the information we know and the fact that Ciel Phantomhive has brought in two guest who have stayed for an abnormally large amount of time. Rumors can spread, and the queen of England might also become curious, though I doubt it." Ashley answered smoothly.

Crystal huffed and clutched onto the bottom of Ashley's skirt, unknowingly showing parts of her cleavage to the audience. Ciel blushed uncontrollably and turned his head away while Sebastian let out a snicker at his master's flustered look.

Ashley had no idea why the two were acting strangely. The boy was blushing like a virgin girl while the butler was seemingly amused. Then she turned her head down, and looked at her friend's chest exposed.

She smiled.

Then sat Crystal up properly.

Finally, she turned her steely gaze at the two and asked, "Do you agree?"Ciel looked confused and asked, "What?"

Ashley sighed in irritation and replied, "Will you let us sojourn here for the duration of the period we are stuck in this world. If so, our services will be offered. Crystal… perhaps could be your assistant; she has a large repertoire of organization, office, and secretarial uses. My skills lie elsewhere; in cooking, cleaning, painting, and such. I would be most useful as maid, cook or anything else you may desire of me. Both of us are well versed in language, including English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Romanian, Japanese and Chinese; history; sciences of earth and space; architecture; and a large range of other skills."

"…"

Ciel was shocked. How smart were those two? Even his knowledge was limited, and how on earth did they learn so many languages? It was insane. And to think, both of these were _women_…

"Is this the norm in your time?" Ciel demanded, curious. Crystal looked up and chirped, "Nope! We attend this girls-only school. We're the elite of the elite in society you know~"

Okay, now he was really surprised. Ashley's image fit those words, but the girly girl didn't look like a particularly intelligent human.

"So?" Ashley snapped.

"What?" the boy replied, still dazed at the information he was presented with.

Ashley raised an eyebrow. "I had asked you if you would allow us to stay" she drawled boringly. The child released a thoughtful expression before answering, "Fine. The girl will work for me in my office and you'll be the maid and cook. Anything else needed of you will be discussed later."

"Then we will prepare ourselves. Do you have any clothes you can lend us? And where will our rooms be?" she asked, preparing to go back to sleep; yesterday had been very draining, and the two did not receive a sufficient amount of rest. Crystal was already dosing off as she spoke.

"The same rooms as before I suppose. Sebastian will lead you two there. As for the clothes, we'll bring you to pick out some clothes later on. For now, Sebastian will bring in suitable clothing for you in a while. You will meet the other workers tomorrow." Ciel waved his hand dismissively.

She nodded her head in agreement and picked Crystal—who had fallen asleep—up and walked to the doors. "After you, Michaelis." She waved her hand in front of her at the door.

Sebastian twitched, then nodded and gave a charming smile as he opened the door and led her out.

While Ashley walked out, she turned her head one last time to Ciel and gave a warning stare. "I would hope that you will not turn out to be some perverted boy now, will you? I have no qualms with you as her lover, but I suggest you take it step by step. If I ever see you two doing something inappropriately, whether she started it or not, you will regret it." She whispered, before following the smirking butler to her room.

She left him stunned, flustered and angry in his office with only one thought in mind: '_She is not, and will never be my lover…'_

_Owari_

A/N: So, readers and reviewers, I hope you liked this chapter. I'm probably going to update as slowely as this, maybe slower since I have a lot of work to do, and writing another fanfic along with this one. But I will still post, so that's good... Please review and give helpful criticism.

**Kumajirou17**- Sorry if it did make sense, it just meant she stuck out her arms for Sebastian to take Crystal to safety. Thanks for the compliment, and it was short only becuase it was the prologue. Usually, my chapters are 2,000 to 4,000 words and up. Like this one.


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